Forge World Gear
Forge Worlds provide some of the most top-notch of Gear. Cogitator: Machines created to sift and consider data, to calculate and to process the sacred language of algorithm, these devices range from small portable models to larger logos tabernacles and matriculation-engines integrated into manufactora, star ships and archive centres. Using a suitable cogitator grants a bonus on Literacy, Logic and Lore Tests when having to compare or sift through large volumes of data. Emplaced(Cogitator): These cogitator systems analyse and process vast quantities of data (planetary tithe records, genotype reconstructions, and so on). Most also feature auto-quills to print data-scrolls, machine-spirit shrines and symbiotic operations-savants or holo-projectors incorporated into their structure. They grant a +20 bonus on relevant Tests. Proper rites and rituals must be observed during cogitator operations on this scale or they will become subject to severe inaccuracies and glitches, perhaps even possession by malign spirits. Personal(Cogitator): These portable units are capable of analysing the information from data-slates and similar sources, and provide a +10 bonus on relevant Tests. Grey Devices: Strange brushed-metal boxes that seem to eat power and make chiming noises in response to unknown factors, so called grey devices are small pieces of technology that have no clear purpose, carry a peculiar aura to them and seem to answer questions in some way. These odd devices first turned up in the ancient Pellucidan Tunnels, and are considered sacred mysteries to the Priesthood of Mars but also have become a blasphemous item of superstition and forbidden games of prognostication for others. These heretics bait the machine-spirits of the grey devices hoping to make them respond, making a gambling game of it, while others treat them as auguries or links to the beyond. Some say the devices respond purely randomly or in ways barely understood let alone mimicked by a player, others that some contain “malifica”, vile unclean spirits that lead the unwary astray. Finding a Game: Trying to find a place offering games with a grey device requires an Availability Test on a forge world or Mechanicus domain with a –30 penalty. It is all but impossible if the person trying to find it is a techpriest or in the company of tech-priests. If a device can be found, however, aside from its worth, it will often provide an introduction into darker things. Holo-Projector: Cased in brass, crawling with chrome-sheathed cables and hissing steam, a holo-projector is a feature common to the briefing rooms of the various arms of the Adepta. The rituals of constructing and maintaining these devices are some of the most ancient and sacred. The flickering cone of blue-tinged imagery it projects is the product of muttered prayers and burning tapers. A holo-projector can be linked to a cogitator or other data feed. Hyper-Density Penetrators: Famously nicknamed “Lathe Body-Blowers” for their appalling effect of ploughing through vulnerable flesh, these bullets are cast from a unique dense metal alloy only made possible by exploiting the strange gravitational forces within the Lathe System. Because of their great mass, they must be propelled by a far more powerful explosive charge than a normal round, and so are limited only to the sturdiest firearms capable of handling them. Effects: Reduce the base range of the weapon by half. Increase its Penetration by 2. The weapon gains the Tearing Quality. Finally, an average man-sized target hit by one of these rounds must succeed on an Ordinary (+10) Toughness Test or be knocked off its feet from the impact. Weapons: Hand cannon, hunting rifles, shotguns (lose the Scatter effect), bolt pistols and boltguns (weapon Damage type changes from X to I). Isotropic Fuel Rods: A basic building block of Imperium technology, and truly a surviving wonder of the High Dark Age, these metre-long metal rods contain a concentrated liquid metal storage medium capable of holding vast quantities of energy. A single fully-charged rod is able to power a small settlement or entire hab-block for several weeks. The technology to create isotropic fuel rods is a jealously guarded Mechanicus secret, and the rods themselves are highly valuable commodities. Lathe Blade(Weapon Upgrade): The astronomical and gravitic alignment of the Lathe worlds creates the conditions for the production of metal alloys of rare and singular properties. Such a strange metal is used to fashion the legendary Lathe blade. So phenomenal is their strength and structure that they can have paper thin edges yet be flexible enough for the blade to resist breaking under the impact of the most powerful blows, and can even be unaffected by the devastating action of a power field. Some, including Lord Hax himself, favour a Lathe-forged blade over a power weapon such is their quality and repute. Effects: A Lathe-bladed weapon loses the Primitive quality. Increase the weapon’s Damage by 2 and its Penetration by +3. Wielders of these weapons gain a +10 bonus on Weapon Skill Tests. A Lathe blade cannot be destroyed by the effects of a power field and counts as having an Armour value of 25 if directly attacked. A Lathe blade is automatically of the Best Craftsmanship (the effects of this have already been included in these rules). This upgrade cannot be combined with the Mono upgrade. Weapons: Knives, throwing knives, swords, axes and great weapons. Opus Machina: One of the ancient names given to the skull and cog wheel symbol of the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Opus Machina is known throughout the Imperium and is as sacred to the servants of the Omnissiah as is the Aquila is to the Ecclesiarchy. The versions presented here are no simple symbols, but contain broadcasted code-ciphers and data-djinn to proclaim their master’s worth to those that are pure enough to hear. As long as the character knows how to employ it properly— that is, has the Common Lore (Machine Cult) skill—the bearer of this symbol gains a +10 bonus on all Fellowship Tests concerning tech-priests and followers of the Machine God. Greater Icon of Passage(Opus Machina): This devices functions as a standard Opus Machina, but it also carries numerous code ciphers, over-ride decrypts, and effector fields, making it the equivalent of a set of multikeys (see page 151 of Dark Heresy), granting a +10 bonus on Security Tests made to disable alarms and commune with machine-spirits. Tempest Bolt Shells: Tempest bolts shells are manufactured in one place only, Mars, the only world capable of exploiting the rare and potent technology needed to produce such arms. Tempest shells contain a powerful miniaturised plasma-shock generator that releases a pulse of electromagnetic and thermal energy as the shell detonates. Quantities of Tempest shells are held in the armouries of the Magos Militant of the Lathes and used to equip the tech-priest Destructor Covenants sent out to destroy hereteks and other rogue elements, as they are particularly effective at destroying corrupted or abominable machines. Effects: Change the weapon’s Damage class from X to E. The weapon also gains the Shock quality. Weapons: Bolt pistols, boltguns and heavy bolters. Tears of the Dragon: The Adeptus Mechanicus makes extensive use of artificial psycho-viral infection to condition the minds of their servants via the use of so-called meme-viruses. The Tears of the Dragon is the name of one such rare and hazardous agent, used most often on the elite Skitarii Centurions. Once infected, the subject falls into a deathly fever, and is confronted with pre-programmed visions and sense-recordings of the worst horrors the Mechanicus have encountered in its long history. Those that survive this meme-virus fever with their minds intact have conquered fear and the frailties of human sanity. After infection, the subject must succeed on a Difficult (–10) Willpower Test or gain 1d10+10 Insanity Points. A successful Test grants the character the Fearless talent but permanently reduces his Fellowship by 1d10 points. Category:Gear